Wet cleaning rag storage solutions
July 10, 2010 2:23 PM Subscribe
How to store damp cleaning rags until wash time?
I use cloth rags to clean & dust my house. I don't want to ferry the wet rags down to the wash each time I use one, but I can't figure out a convenient and non-smelly rag storage solution. I have a small wicker basket I throw them in until wash time, but even after a day, the rags start to reek. I try to let them dry out first by draping them across the sink, but I don't like the aesthetics of that. Are there used rag solutions I'm missing here? Thanks for your suggestions!
I use cloth rags to clean & dust my house. I don't want to ferry the wet rags down to the wash each time I use one, but I can't figure out a convenient and non-smelly rag storage solution. I have a small wicker basket I throw them in until wash time, but even after a day, the rags start to reek. I try to let them dry out first by draping them across the sink, but I don't like the aesthetics of that. Are there used rag solutions I'm missing here? Thanks for your suggestions!
Wring the rag out dry enough that it won't drip, then hang it some place out of the way, maybe on the inside door knob of your bedroom.
Alternatively, put it in a plastic bag and pop it in the freezer.
posted by Bruce H. at 2:29 PM on July 10, 2010
Alternatively, put it in a plastic bag and pop it in the freezer.
posted by Bruce H. at 2:29 PM on July 10, 2010
You really need to let them dry out somehow. Short of storing them in a bleach solution or something drastic like that, wet or damp rags are just going to start to stink. Can you get a small clothes drying rack and hang them on there? Can you set up a small drying line in your laundry room?
posted by ssg at 2:29 PM on July 10, 2010
posted by ssg at 2:29 PM on July 10, 2010
I hang them to dry on the edges of the rag hamper (a small basket in the laundry room) and put them in the basket once they're dry.
posted by OLechat at 2:39 PM on July 10, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by OLechat at 2:39 PM on July 10, 2010 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Yeah, I figured letting them dry out was inevitable. I just didn't know if there was some beautifully designed or technologically advanced drying method I was missing. These are all great suggestions so far - thanks. The freezer idea is especially intriguing.
posted by Zosia Blue at 2:41 PM on July 10, 2010
posted by Zosia Blue at 2:41 PM on July 10, 2010
Is there a sunny spot you can hang them up to dry in? I put mine out on the deck to dry in the sunshine before throwing them, bone-dry, in the dirty laundry basket. A mesh bag on the fire escape maybe, if you have one?
posted by ambrosia at 2:43 PM on July 10, 2010
posted by ambrosia at 2:43 PM on July 10, 2010
I'm curious about where your washing machine is if it's really a worse trek than putting them in the freezer.
If that's NOT the case, then the washing machine is a good place to store dirty rags, even if you don't actually wash them immediately.
posted by emilyw at 2:46 PM on July 10, 2010
If that's NOT the case, then the washing machine is a good place to store dirty rags, even if you don't actually wash them immediately.
posted by emilyw at 2:46 PM on July 10, 2010
Response by poster: It's not a bad trek. Washing machine is in the basement & freezer is in the kitchen upstairs where I do most of my cleaning with the rags. It's no big thing to run down to the laundry, really - just trying to be a little more efficient (and indulge my laziness). Thanks again for all the great suggestions.
posted by Zosia Blue at 2:52 PM on July 10, 2010
posted by Zosia Blue at 2:52 PM on July 10, 2010
Well, this wouldn't work for everyone, but my solution to a similar problem was to move my washing machine closer to the washing.
We put the washer and the dryer upstairs next to the bedroom, where all the washing comes from and goes to, and WOW no more carting everything around the house.
This solution may be considered overkill for dishcloths.
posted by emilyw at 3:05 PM on July 10, 2010
We put the washer and the dryer upstairs next to the bedroom, where all the washing comes from and goes to, and WOW no more carting everything around the house.
This solution may be considered overkill for dishcloths.
posted by emilyw at 3:05 PM on July 10, 2010
Best answer: I have a rack of hooks hanging at the top of the stairs. I hang a little tote bag on it for dry rags, kitchen towels, and such-like to go in. I hang damp rags on the hooks to dry. If there aren't any hooks left, I move some now-dry rags to the tote bag. (A mesh bag would be better but I haven't gotten around to getting one.) When I'm running out of dishcloths and cleaning rags, I pop everything into the tote bag and haul it down to the washer.
posted by not that girl at 3:17 PM on July 10, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by not that girl at 3:17 PM on July 10, 2010 [1 favorite]
I have a small bathroom-type trash can in my kitchen for a laundry basket. Towels that are just dirty go straight in, wet or damp ones get hung over the side or draped across the top until dry and then pushed in.
posted by Lyn Never at 3:19 PM on July 10, 2010
posted by Lyn Never at 3:19 PM on July 10, 2010
We have a wire-mesh wastebasket that we put ours in -- generally, I rinse my dirty cleaning rags out with water and a little dish soap, then wring them out before putting them in the basket, which significantly cuts down on the stink factor. If the basket starts to smell bad before it fills up, we throw all the rags in the wash with extra bleach, and wash out the basket itself.
I might suggest switching to wire-mesh or plastic -- wicker is pretty absorbent and I bet there's some funky stuff growing in the wicker itself at this point, which might be why the rags start stinking so quickly.
posted by kataclysm at 3:49 PM on July 10, 2010
I might suggest switching to wire-mesh or plastic -- wicker is pretty absorbent and I bet there's some funky stuff growing in the wicker itself at this point, which might be why the rags start stinking so quickly.
posted by kataclysm at 3:49 PM on July 10, 2010
Response by poster: Not that girl - hooks are a great idea! I have a back wall in my kitchen that would be perfect for this.
posted by Zosia Blue at 5:47 PM on July 10, 2010
posted by Zosia Blue at 5:47 PM on July 10, 2010
Response by poster: Always hard to pick a best answer because these are all great, but I think hooks work the best. (Moving my washer/dryer is a long-time fantasy of mine, but I don't think my old house could handle the change.)
posted by Zosia Blue at 5:48 PM on July 10, 2010
posted by Zosia Blue at 5:48 PM on July 10, 2010
Best answer: Small towel bar mounted on the inside of the below-kitchen-sink cabinet doors. Put one on each door and you have room for lots of rags, hung out of the way, right there.
posted by galadriel at 7:25 PM on July 10, 2010
posted by galadriel at 7:25 PM on July 10, 2010
I think the traditional solution to drying dishcloths is to install something like this on the inside of the cabinet door under your sink. Since your cleaning cloths are headed to the washer, you could put it on a wall near the stairs to the basement and take the accumulated dry ones with you whenever you're headed that way.
posted by lakeroon at 9:04 PM on July 10, 2010
posted by lakeroon at 9:04 PM on July 10, 2010
In our house, we have a guest bathroom not far from the laundry room whose shower/tub combo never gets used, so we wring out dirty/wet (microfiber) cleaning cloths and drape them over the tub faucet, shower faucet, soap thing, edge of the tub, whatever, until they're dry. Once they're dry, they go into the tub itself until a full load of that type of cloth can be washed. The shower curtain keeps everything delightfully hidden, and we've never had issues with stink from the cloths.
posted by jroybal at 10:33 PM on July 10, 2010
posted by jroybal at 10:33 PM on July 10, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 2:27 PM on July 10, 2010